At first glance: social meanings of dental appearance

Abstract

Objectives: An important factor in social interaction is physical appearance. Major elements in the evaluation of physical appearance are the mouth and teeth. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of tooth appearance on the development of a first impression of the other person, with regard to the sex of both the respondent and the target.

Methods: Eight facial photographs of individuals with intact upper teeth were manipulated: one set was left untouched and the other was professionally altered so that the front anterior teeth appeared decayed. The photographs were randomly aligned in sets of eight, each set consisting of four individuals with an original, intact dentition and four other individuals with a "decayed" dentition. The sets of photographs were then presented to 115 respondents (65 males and 50 females). Evaluations were made according to three categories of traits--esthetic, social, and professional.

Results: For all three evaluation categories, the difference in scores between decayed and intact dentition given to targets were significantly higher when participants of one sex evaluated targets of the opposite sex, as compared to evaluating targets of their own sex.

Conclusions: The effect of tooth appearance on the physical attractiveness stereotype is more evident when males evaluate females and vice versa, rather than when evaluating their own sex.